I was wondering... 1) what do you feed your otos? 2) how do the otos go about it? (I mean, do they all launch themselves towards it? do you seem them constantly eating them?) 3) how/when do you clean up the leftovers?

The reason I ask is that I have been feeding mine algae wafers and boiled zucchini. BUT, when I put it in the algae wafer, very rarely do I find them on it. In fact even if I let it fall very close to them, they ignore it. Whenever I do see them "eating" them, the algae wafer has already disintegrated and they just happen to be laying over it (not sure if it's coincidence or what). The zucchini is sort of the same... when I drop it a few hours later I'll occasionally see them on top of it. At the moment there are only 2 because the others died (I know they are supposed to be in grounds of around 5, so I plan on getting more soon =/). They are in a 20 gallon long. Is it possible that a) they don't find the food because it's such a large area? or b) they just don't like that kind of food? Their bellies look normal I guess... not particularly big though and I don't see them poop often.

i had the same problem too. they wouldnt eat the wafers and veggies. i seen them find it, hover over it, nipple for a second and then swim away. i ended up refunding the wafers and let the otos just eat the algae in the tank and that was about a month ago and theyre doing fine. algae will naturally occur in the tank and they will find it and eat it and keep doing it. if u have fake plants dont clean them or dont clean them as good or as often so they have something to eat and dont wipe down the insides of the tank walls, they will get to it.

but for those wafer leftovers, once they break up and start falling apart fish it out your tank but honestly just refund it and say your otos wont eat it.

otos i think are more low maintainance then bettas that or maybe its the fact i dont pay attention to them. i barely checked their belly size maybe a week ago, and they got full round bellies so without me really doing anything and theyre doing fine. plus i consider my betta my pet, the otos are my betta's pets.

Oh ok! Glad to know I'm not the only one ^^; I have a bunch of live plants and they do collect algae but the weird thing is that I never see them on the leaves that have the most algae... Maybe I just have confused little otos. I've been considering making algae outside since it's so sunny here in Florida and shouldn't be a problem, but I'm worried of having huge algae problems if I do that -.- Maybe I just shouldn't worry so much about them, I suppose if they were truly starving then they would resort to eating the zucchini!

I'm no oto expert but I've found with mine that they seem to prefer eating their veggies if I clip it to the side of the tank for them. I've tried weighing it down but they don't seem to go after it as well. I've never had any luck at all getting them to touch an algae wafer either. I've even tried wedging a wafer into the fleshy area of a slice of zucchini and they just eat all around it.

I don't know how mine know when I've put a new veggie in for them but within 5 minutes, they're making their way over to where it is and they're in a 75 gallon tank so I doubt it's the large area that's causing them not to find it. It's like they "smell" it. I don't know, can fish even "smell"? lol

Are you blanching it long enough for it to be soft enough for them? I do mine for about 2 minutes. Have you tried offering them veggies other than zucchini? I have a garden in the summer and grow yellow squash, cucumbers and zucchini for them and slice them up and freeze them in order to be able to offer something different each time just for variety. Although mine seem to prefer the zucchini, maybe you could offer yours something different and see how they do. I even give them broccoli occasionally and they like that too.

Aw they look so cute! I've never tried to clip them to the wall but it seems like a good idea since they are often on the wall or on a plant. I was doing 1 minute but I will try 2 minutes =] I also noticed that you shave the side of the zucchini, maybe that'll help too. Thank you for the tips! Oh an for the broccoli, do you put in all of it (the top and the trunk)? do you blanch that as well?

Like yours, mine are always stuck to a wall or a leaf and I hardly ever see them on the bottom so that's probably right that they prefer to feed "vertically". haha

That's actually a slice of yellow squash - don't know why it looks so washed out in the photo (probably my crappy camera), but I don't peel the veggies. In fact, mine love eating the outside just as much as the inside.

When I give them broccoli, I usually blanch it a little longer - maybe 2 1/2 minutes - because it seems to have more bulk to it and is tougher. I usually chop off all or at least most of the top part (the little green balls) because they make a mess when they start breaking off and drifting everywhere so I mainly just give them the stem (trunk) part.

1) Blanched zucchini (blanched for 6m). I never feed them algae wafers anymore, as they've shown zero interest in them.
2) They generally ignore it when I drop it in, then sit on it for days and days til it's gone
3) I don't. I have a heavily planted tank, so I just let the snails and copepods recycle it.

One other thing... My otos poop like rabbits. If they're not pooping, that could be a sign that they're not eating enough. Mine always zip around with fat, round bellies.

1) Blanched zucchini (blanched for 6m). I never feed them algae wafers anymore, as they've shown zero interest in them.
2) They generally ignore it when I drop it in, then sit on it for days and days til it's gone
3) I don't. I have a heavily planted tank, so I just let the snails and copepods recycle it.

One other thing... My otos poop like rabbits. If they're not pooping, that could be a sign that they're not eating enough. Mine always zip around with fat, round bellies.

I was just now blanching my zucchini. Maybe I am doing it wrong because afterwards, when I touch it, it's not necessarily soft. In other words, if I wanted to pull out a chunk of zucchini from the middle I'd probably have to use my nails or a knife. Pieces of the zucchini don't just "rub off" like a pea would. Is it supposed to? I heated water in a little cup for 2 minutes, then I left the zucchini in it for 5-6 minutes

When it comes out, it's the consistency of firm mush. Meaning, if I compress it, it'll squish but not come apart and if I poke the middle with my plant tongs, they go right through it with minimal resistance

...I heated water in a little cup for 2 minutes, then I left the zucchini in it for 5-6 minutes

If I'm understanding what you said correctly, this sounds as if you're just soaking the veggie in hot water. Blanching is the actual boiling of the vegetable in water.

Bring your water to a boil (either in a pan on the stovetop or sometimes I use a glass measuring cup in the microwave) and then drop your slice of zucchini, cucumber, etc. into the boiling water and then continue to boil one to two or three minutes until it becomes soft. The amount of time you boil will probably depend on how thick your slices are and how many you are boiling at one time. Be sure to cool it off before offering it to your otos! I run a little cool water over mine until it no longer feels warm.

As Sagat said, it will definitely be of a firm mush consistency - not just completely "melted" but not still hard at all either.